I saw the sign
by Annjirika
Summary: Yuffie and Leon have a fight (so begins every LY) but this time...yuffie finds a mysterious watch. This watch gives her the power to see the future...and HE that it holds. {One-shot LY}


_A/N: A short little one shot I wrote in my free time, just to get away from the monotony of my other stories. I'm still working on those though, don't worry. Also, I can't spell 'Gephetto's' so I don't know if it's correct...sorry._

Chapter edited 2/24/05 

z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z

**_How could a person like you bring me joy _**

_**Under the pale moon**_

**_Where I see a lot of stars_**

"I hate you!" I scream as I fling the hotel lobby doors open. They slam with a loud and heavy thud behind me. Oddly enough, it calms my frazzled nerves.

In my mind, I curse my fighting partner for being so callous and hurtful. I have done nothing to deserve that sort of treatment or the words he words he had so carelessly tossed at me. Well...nothing done within the last few weeks anyway.

The night is warm and soothing, bugs buzzing around the lamppost lights. Its always night here in Traverse Town. The sky never brightens and the stars never go out. At least, thanks to Sora. I wonder what Sora is doing right now? Is he home with that girlfriend of his? I sure hope so. _Someone_ deserves to be happy and no one deserves it more than Sora.

_Do I deserve to be happy?_ I ask myself bitterly.

_Of course Yuffie. You are happy. Just a little upset right now._ I console myself. _Okay, maybe more than a little upset, but who wants to be treated like a kid? Anyone would blow up like I did if they were put in my situation. Right?_

I growl to myself and kick a pebble out of my way. It hits the wall of an old abandoned store. I stare up at the used to be bright sign. Though someone has nailed a slab of wood over the words, I remember what it used to be. Handbags. The owner's heart was taken by the heartless. His family tried to stay afloat but the town's population had taken a serious dive. Business was too far-gone. The mother and her two boys left town a few months ago, closing up the shop.

I begin to walk again and pick up my pace. Thoughts of Squall rush into my mind and I flinch. Not even the bright neon lights give me as bad a headache as Squall can manage, even though he doesn't try. I jump the wall, down onto the bench and step down from there, landing in a pile of water. Bleh. Where'd that come from? Now as I walk, an annoying squelch follows each step. Lucky me.

The waterway looks promising. Even though my shoes are already soaked, I slip them off and wade into the dark murky water. My eyes adjust to the darkness slowly. I keep my fingers tightly wrapped around both shoes as I reach the deep area, but one of them gets caught in a random current and slips from my grasp.

I curse under my breath, trying desperately to catch it before it sinks to the bottom. I brush against it but the effort is useless. My poor left shoe is lost forever. Super.

I continue my journey toward the moss-covered shore, pulling myself onto it and plopping onto my butt. I pull my legs up and put an arm around them, tossing my shoe behind me. I hear it bounce a few feet away. I wish it was Squall's head. Stupid meanie.

Sure I'm only 17 but I'm not completely clueless. I hear his words again. _You're too young to understand Yuffie. Maybe one day you'll grow up_. It isn't that his words are necessarily mean, it's the _way_ he said it.

It's the fact that _he_ said it.

I want to prove myself in Squall's eyes, that I'm a good fighter and worth keeping around, but I am afraid he'll never see me as anything but a stupid teenager. I hadn't even deserved what he said. The only thing I said was "Maybe Rinoa will come back eventually."

There was no reason for him to get so upset. After all, Rinoa's heart wasn't taken while we were there, so she probably escaped. I remember Squall's crush on her, and I remember my spying on them in the bushes a few times. He was so in love with her...at my age too! Who is Squall to tell me I'm too young to understand!

Ever since the day the heartless took over Hollow Bastion, she'd been gone. And Squall had never been the same. That's when he changed his name to Leon. It's a silly name, I refuse to call him that. He is Squall and always will be. I flop back onto the cold ground and flinch. Something is underneath me. I sit back up and look at the item. A watch. Something is different about this watch. It has three faces on it, each with 10 hands and no numbers. It is very very beautiful.

I wonder if someone dropped it...and then I wonder who. If I owned something this beautiful I probably would have protected it with my life. Is it Merlin's? I look up the stairs of the green corridor, then back at the watch. I'll find out.

I get to my feet, prepared to leave when I get this sudden urge to put it on. I look around to make sure no one is hiding and watching, then put it on. I clasp it shut and admire the effect. It is definitely not me.

There is a strange noise, like a train. I look up and around at the dungeon- like place, starting to get a little nervous. It grows louder, and I feel a breeze. Soon this breeze is strong enough to knock me off my feet and I fall, shielding my face. There is a light...and suddenly everything is gone. I look up cautiously. What in the world? I am still in the waterway...and nothing has changed. There is no one but me in the place...I think I am going crazy. I forget about the watch and focus on getting out of here before that tornado thing comes back.

I swim out of the place hurriedly, ending up in the alleyway. Now I know something is wrong. The hotel is totally dark, and there are boxes and nails and other construction pieces everywhere. The bright banners are torn down, lying trampled on the ground. I walk quickly and cautiously, hugging myself. Not because I'm cold but because I, the greatest female ninja ever, am scared.

I hurry into Second district, terrified of what I could see. Now all the stores are closed and run down. The Gizmo Shop, the stores, the Hotel, everything is lights out. I wonder about the Dalmatian's house but I don't pause to check on them. I am almost at a full run when I push open the doors to first district. A warm feeling washes over me.

The lights are bright and cheerful, and the Café is still playing its soothing music. The Accessory Shop is up and running flawlessly, as is Gephetto's house. Whatever has happened to the rest of the town made a perfect stop at the Second District doors. The only difference is now there are two mail slots. One is labeled 'Interworld' and the other is labeled 'local'.

I want to run up to the Accessory shop doors and demand to see Cid, but I don't get that chance. The doors fly open and a young girl rushes out, giggling. I have to jump back to keep from being smashed or ran over, but the dark-haired girl keeps running.

"Come chase me mommy!" She yells, galloping past the café. I want to be annoyed by the rudeness of the child but something about her intrigues me. She reminds me of someone...

"Stay close sweetheart. We're leaving soon!" The shop doors open again and a familiar woman steps out. She has shoulder length black hair pulled back by a light headband, a green jean skirt reaching a little above her knees, and a tan tank top that bares a small sliver of her belly. I catch a glimpse of her face and I feel like my jaw has hit the ground.

_That woman has my face!_ I think without _truly_ thinking. _Stupid, she is you_. The sane part of my mind makes fun of me. _Well if you're so smart, am I in the...future?_ I ask myself as I look at the young girl. She has to be around 6, with dark hair and familiar blue eyes. I knew those eyes...just like Squall's. My heart stops. She can't be...she isn't my...I look to the older me with a scowl. _Traitor_. The older me looks in my direction and I hold my breath, waiting for the questioning. She seems to look through me and smiles softly and knowingly before she looks back toward her daughter.

The Accessory shop doors open once more and Cid comes out, older, but still Cid. Another man follows, with long dark spiky hair and fierce blue eyes. His chiseled features are unforgettable and I recognize Squall immediately.

Cid is talking about some new gummyship and how Squall needs to be careful with the right wing. "I've had some trouble with it, but it should be alright. I'll be meeting you guys out there in a few days." He says as he leans against the wall.

"Thanks again Cid." The older me says and gives him a quick hug.

"We'll see ya." Squall flips his gunblade over his shoulder.

"Aww do we have ta go?" My future daughter whines as she runs over to Cid. Cid rolls his eyes and obligingly picks her up.

"'Fraid so kid." He tells her. She crosses her eyes and sticks out her tongue. I grin. _That's my girl_. The older me laughs and pulls her from Cid's arms.

"Time to go." She says, heading down the steps. The girl looks over her mother's shoulder up at Squall.

"Is daddy coming?" She asks. The older Yuffie pauses, then turns to face the two men with a smile.

"You heard your daughter. Are you coming?" She asks in a playful tone. I look toward Squall to see his reaction. I nearly fall out when I see him smile.

"I'm coming." He nods goodbye to Cid and joins his family. I watch in awe as the girl crawls into Squall's arms and lays her head on his shoulder. He leans over and gives the older Yuffie a soft kiss.

"EWW." I hear my daughter cry. I am not thinking '_ew'_. I am thinking,_ Wow. Squall isn't as big a hardass as he makes himself out to be_. And then I shudder. This is _Squall_ we're talking about. I don't love him like that...yet.

I don't know how long I stand there, but a while after the shop doors open again and the lights are shut off. Cid begins to whistle a familiar tune as he locks the doors. I blink, remembering he can't see me. With an evil smile, I pick up a few stray pebbles.

Might as well have a little bit of fun...

_z-z-z-z-z-z-z_

Yuffie held the watch in her hands, standing in the waterway. The wind and light had just faded once again, leaving her to wonder what had just happened. She thought about taking the watch up to Merlin...but then he'd ask her about it. Did she really want to answer any questions right now?

Instead, she lowered the watch to the ground carefully; treating it like it was a bomb waiting to explode. Someone else could find this demon thing and deal with it. As soon as it touched the ground, she backed away slowly and swam toward the exit.

Back in the waterway, a man with a long white beard and twinkling blue eyes hurried down the stairs. He looked around, humming merrily. His eyes fell on the watch and he smiled.

"Did it work Merlin?" A light voice called from up the green stairs.

The man called Merlin yelled back, "Yes. Like a charm." He bent over and picked up the strange wristwatch then hurried back up to his house.

Back inside, he set the watch on the table and looked to the fairy godmother. "Who's next?" She looked down at the strange, blank book in her hands.

"It says here...her name is Kairi."

_Z-z-z-z-z-z-z_

Back in the hotel, Yuffie walked around the lobby nervously. She didn't want to go into her and Squall's room partly because she was embarrassed by her tantrum earlier. The rest of her didn't want to go in there because she'd have to face the possibility of the future.

The decision was made for her when Squall opened their door and walked out into the hall. Yuffie froze, watching him carefully. Should she run? No...he'd know it was her. He rubbed his forehead tiredly and kept his head down as he walked. Perfect...Yuffie could just sneak past him...

She thought she made it until... "Yuffie?" She flinched. Darn it.

"Hey...Squall."

"Leon. You've been gone a while." He said. '_You have no idea._' She thought. "Over your fit?"

Was that...laughter in his voice? Yuffie wanted to marvel at the emotion he was showing but she was too busy fuming. She spun around, fully prepared to let him know just what she thought. The second her eyes met his she saw her future daughter in them.

Yuffie's face grew warm and she began feeling very flustered. '_What the hell_...' She quickly looked away again. "Yeah." She shrugged. He had won this battle...but only on unfair terms. _He_ hadn't seen their future...their future _together_. Squall too surprised by her actions, though he didn't come out and show it.

"Well...goodnight." Yuffie said finally and turned away. Her hand was on the doorknob when she heard him say,

"Goodnight."

'_Stupid butterflies_.' She thought as her stomach fluttered.

"Oh...and Yuffie." She poked her head out the door hesitantly.

"Yeah…"

He looked at her and asked with an exasperated sigh, "Where're your shoes?"

_z-z-z-z-z-z-z_

**_I saw the sign_**

_**It opened up my eyes **_

**_I saw the sign  
_**  
_The end._

I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Leon (too damn bad), or The Sign.


End file.
